My name is Hurija Mukaipovska, I am a Masters student studying Civil Law at the Faculty of Law at Ss. Ciryl and Methodius University in Skopje. I was supported for three years during my undergraduate studies by the Roma Memorial University Scholarship Program (RMUSP). I am also a beneficiary of the RomaVersitas program.
I think Roma people should start to be more interested in law and study law, because firstly there are only few of us that are graduated lawyers and are working as lawyers. Secondly, I think Roma peoples’ knowledge about laws and their legacies is quite poor, and this is problematic as many of the problems which concern Roma peoples’ struggles are also connected to the law.
In my opinion, Roma students have to fight very hard to beat the potential obstacles on their path to the success. In terms of reaching a successful career, we face many obstacles such as inappropriate financial status or in most cases lack of motivation to reach a higher level in life and to even graduate. I think it’s important to remember that you only have one chance to live your life and your knowledge is the only thing that no one can take from you. Currently, I am working on a project which is going to be implemented by RomaVersitas and is targeting secondary and tertiary students, increasing their access and participation to education and their transition to the labor market. I think this report will be very productive for people, and it will help them to see how others have built their education and ultimately become working adults.
In my student days I was inspired to undertake volunteerism activities such as writing for newspapers, such as Roma Index, or joining the debate club to increase my knowledge and to gain more information about Roma people. I hope that through my educational journey I have made some footsteps which will stay and maybe help some of the next generation, making their path a little bit easier.
